Ed, Edd, and Eddy: Peach Creek High
by nintendiehard
Summary: It is now 5 years since the incident. How are things going now? FanFic debut. Please R&R!
1. Five Years

Authors Notes: Are primarily at the end of the story so as not to ruin anything. However I will say this. In this story I make mention of events happening in the fanfic, Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy: Blood Of Obsession. I will go ahead and make it a pre-requisite to reading my story. Seriously, if you don't read it first, then you won't understand my story much at all Mine is not a continuation per se but it does exist in the same time/space continuum. Also the story fades from present time to flashback pretty easily so I apologize for any confusion

ON TO THE STORY!

Peach Creek High

Edd closed the door behind him as he left for school, early Friday morning. He walked along the path that connected the driveway to the front door of his parent's house. As he walked, lugging his backpack by one of the two straps he admired the lawn that he'd mown the previous day. He had done quite a good job, as always, and now simply looked down at his feet to check the edging job. He had always hated… no, hate wasn't a strong enough word, he DETESTED mowing the lawn, however it was one of the myriad of chores that had been expected of him since before his adolescence. Though he abhorred the task, he knew not to cross his parents, and once he had done the job he'd always marvel at his handiwork for reasons even he did not understand.

He smoothed out his shirt and fished around in the pocket of his blue jeans for his car keys. He wore a red shirt with a blue and white short sleeve button up shirt over it, unbuttoned. The cuffs of his pant legs draped over his Vans, covering the shoes all but completely. And of course the hat, which had become somewhat of a trademark for him, sat neatly on his head, covering all but a few strands of his hair, which stuck out randomly from the rear.

He finished his trek to the street, where his car sat waiting for him. His Crimson, 95' Lincoln Town car was far from new, but he liked it anyway. He liked the professional look of it and the fact that it had plenty of room for its passengers. This suited him fine since he'd grown tall for his age and also since his friends always seemed to bring any manner of materials with them on their many adventures. He unlocked the door and got inside the leather lined interior throwing his backpack in the back seat. He stuck the key into the ignition and turned, bringing the engine to life. As the engine began to settle into its normal rhythm, the new CD player, quite possibly the most out of place looking thing in the vehicle, began to play the organ and horn melody of "Let's Push Things Forward" by The Streets. He checked behind him and pulled onto the Rathink Avenue heading toward the Cul-de-sac to turn around and get on the main road to get to school. As he pulled up to the stop sign, he began to sing along to the song and then turned left instead of right toward Peach Creek High.

"I excel in both content and deliverance, so lets put on our classics and we'll have a little dance, shall we?" He went along with the song as he drove toward the Park n' Flush. He still had another half an hour till his calculus early bird class started and it would take him no more than five minutes to get to school, even from the Park n' Flush. He had often wondered about that name, how anyone could hope to attract tenants to a place with such a moniker? However upon observation of the many dilapidated trailers and their inhabitants proved that there was obviously some people out there who either didn't care, or were illiterate.

Regardless, he drove into the trailer park looking for the one flower which grew in this vast field of manure. After a few turns on the dirty surface of the immense lot, he finally saw in the dim light that the sun donated to the early morning, a young girl standing outside one of the slightly less rundown trailers. She was of average height and wore dark jeans and a white t-shirt with a light jacket on over it. Her hair practically glowed with blue radiance and curved from the top of her head to slightly below her chin, with a stray tuft covering her right eye. As he pulled up and stopped next to her, he turned down the stereo, rolled down the passenger side window and began to smile widely. The girl dropped her backpack and leaned on the car door with her head inside the open window.

"Bum a ride off ya stranger?" She asked.

"Eh, I guess so, where ya headed?" he said with mock indifference and the same smile. The whole reason he was there was for her and they both knew it, they simply enjoyed the fallacy. She then picked her bag up off the ground and opened the door. She sat in the passenger side and tossed her sack right next to Edd's in the back. Then she leaned toward the driver's seat and gave Edd a quick peck on the cheek, widening his smile. No sooner had the door closed then Edd put on the gas in order to get out of the trailer park more quickly. He disliked the area and those who inhabited it, save for Marie of course. Once they had left the Park n' Flush and were on their way, Edd remembered to change to track 12, "Weak Become Heroes". He liked this one alright, but Marie loved it, so he went ahead and changed it. She sat back into her seat and smiled as the familiar song began, then she asked, "So ya ready for tonight?"

He looked at her with minor surprise, which faded quickly. "Of course," he replied, "but first we have to get today's test over with." He added a small chuckle afterwards. He became aware of Marie's sudden uneasiness, as many couples become aware of each other's feelings easily. "What's wrong?" he asked knowing full well the answer.

"Huh? Oh nothing" she replied, adding a fake smile in a vain attempt to seem sincere. Marie hated math. She always had, but had been able to pick it up with a little effort. They had both taken the same early bird class in order to be together. Edd liked the class, and sharing it with Marie made it even better, but he knew that it was not nearly as enjoyable for Marie. He helped her when he could and took pleasure in doing so, but at the same time he knew that she simply had no interest in the subject. She tried to keep it a secret, but it was no use. She had only taken the class in order for them to be together, and more importantly together long before her sisters and his friends would be on campus. They had done their best to stay together for the past five years, since the incident when Marie almost killed herself.

That was a hard time for the both of them. But at least some good came out of it, they'd finally, truly met each other. Well, actually, Marie sort of knew more about Edd than he did of her back then. That day… as was said by F.D.R. of that notorious December day, was "a day that will live in infamy" in both of their memories. It was still an experience that haunted each of them and one which they tried to forget. She had almost died in the woods, under a tree, a tree that grew with a small, yet conspicuous red vein on one side as it sucked up nutrients from the blood soaked earth below it.

After finally stabilizing Marie and getting her cleaned up, he went back to her tree with the intention of recovering anything of hers that she might have left. What he did find was a testament that she'd scrawled on the tree. He stood there, reading it over and over again until he needed not look at the cuts in the old gnarled bark to recite the short paragraph. He immediately ran back to his house and snuck into his room, where the bruised, battered, and formally bleeding Marie was deep asleep in his bed. He slunk over to his desk and once there, he couldn't help but look at her as he reached in his drawer to retrieve his digital camera. He crept back over to the door not taking his eyes off the sleeping, sapphire haired girl. As he softly shut the door behind him, he stopped, and then open the door again to get a shot of her as she slept. A few seconds later he was in the garage perusing the hook lined walls, in search of a file.

A few minutes later he stood in front of Marie's tree adjusting the settings on his camera and directing the lens at the carvings on the tree. After a few shots, he turned the camera off and inserted it into the left pocket of his blue shorts, simultaneously removing the file from the right. He stepped forward, avoiding what little blood remained on the ground that had not yet soaked into the dirt. The same blood that ran down his arms from her open wrists as he ran with Marie's limp body back to the Cul-de-sac earlier that day. He stood before her tree for a second, and then began to grind the tree bark away with the file, exposing the light colored meat of the tree, until there was nothing left of the message.

That day, was so long ago and yet so vivid in his mind. He was thinking about it when Marie interrupted his thoughts. "I don't know about this test." She said worriedly.

"Don't worry Marie, I think you'll do alright, the big question here is what time am I picking you up?" He thought it best to change the subject and as he glanced to his right he saw that she became more at ease, if only minutely, at his efforts.

"Y'know, I think that this dance would be so much better if you could get the guys to take May and Lee."

Edd laughed out loud at the joke and said "Ok sure, no problem." They both sat there laughing their heads off as Edd pulled into the student parking lot of Peach Creek High School. After shutting off the engine and looking at his watch he looked at Marie, into the eyes of his girlfriend and leaned in to kiss her. Yet another benefit to being at school so early was the fact that no one they knew would be around to mock them. Finally their lips separated and Edd said, "Ok Marie, let's go kick the crap out of this test huh?" She smiled at this and then they both exited the car.

Cont'd authors notes:

You like? Please Review. This is my debut in the Fan Fiction department, and I'd really appreciate a good, or heck even a bad, review.

Also, this is an idea that worked through my brain and I decided to put pen to paper… or well… finger to key I guess. Let me know how you liked it. Like I said at the beginning, the part where I mention about Marie almost killing herself was from a story written by Rune TheElf called **Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy: Blood Of Obsession**

It's a great story and if you haven't read it yet than A) Smacks you upside the head I told you to read it first! B) Go read it right now, damnit!

Ok sorry, lost the happy, but the happys BACK!

Ok well now for the

Disclaimers (I don't know the deal here so I'll go with the "better safe than sorry" approach y'know?)

I, obviously, don't own Ed, Edd, and Eddy, I just really like the show.

It is owned by the fine folks of A.K.A. Cartoon and the show's creator, THE MAN, DANNY ANTONUCCI

Also I Do not own any rights or whatnot to the following

The Streets/ Mike Skinner and any of his awesome music. But check him out he's great.

Lincoln or any of it's Parent companies or subsidiaries. Nice cars though.

Vans, Vans Off the Wall, or any other associated companies. I just like their shoes.


	2. one plus one equals?

Ok then. Ch 2. It's been done or some time now, but I've been waiting for more reviews. I figured that if I was gonna post it, it'd be nice if someone wouild read it. I guess someone will eventually.

! If you havent read the story by Rune TheElf, YOU MUST READ THAT 1ST!

Oh and heres the reviews I've gotten so far. I saw someone else do this and thought it'd be a cool idea.

RavenandBB4life "r u going 2 keep going with this?" See for yourself.

FanofDa'EdBoyz "Yes I read the fan fic you suggested before I read yours and both are very good in sucsession. I'm sorry if I don't have much to review about either of your fics though because my sister had the TV on really loud and I couldn't consentrate, but it was really good writing and the beginings of a plot. Write more! ;)"

See! he listens, read the pre-requisit story! I didn't wqrite it though. Yeah, I can't concentrate in my room unless my Room Mate is out or out cold. Many thanks for the praise. I will and I have!

ON TO THE ORGY... I MEAN STORY

As Edd penciled in the letter C on the last question, he stood up and grabbed the packet. He approached the teacher's desk and looked at the clock. Only twenty minutes of the 65 minute class had elapsed and, like usual, he was the first to finish the test. After setting the test on Mr. Arbezzi's desk he walked back to his seat and sat there, looking about the room but paying special attention to the front left corner of the room where his girlfriend sat, worrying over the test answer sheet. Mr. Arbezzi had all his students sit at a desk that was at least two seats away from their normal seat on test days, thus Edd and Marie were not together as they would have been on a normal day.

'C'mon Marie, I know you can do this,' he thought to himself, cheering her on silently. Almost as though she could hear him root for her, Marie shot him a quick glance and smile. All without Mr. Arbezzi noticing, a trick her and her sisters had mastered long ago in order to effectively cheat on tests in the past. Edd smiled to himself as the thought crossed his mind that she could probably play a game of Tic Tac Toe with him from 4 seats away and Mr. Arbezzi would never know. He hoped that she was doing well on the test, which she should be because they had been studying for it every lunch hour that week. But he wasn't too sure, she always complained that Mr. Arbezzi hated her. This was a common excuse employed by a few of his fellow students who did poorly in their classes, but one he entertained for her nonetheless. He sighed and thought about all she'd done to stay with him in the last few years. After the incident, the two of them stayed together for a while, mostly due to the fact that the less either of them spent around their cohorts, the better.

She claimed to hate her sisters because of how Lee continued to beat her after she smacked Eddy around. How, even though Marie had screamed as she was blacking out, Lee did not allocate any mercy to her sister. Of all people, she thought that Lee would understand the violence that she had directed towards Eddy, but she was wrong. May had simply sat back and watched as Marie began to lose consciousness. And then there was Eddy's revenge, the thought of which made a feeling of rage sweep up through Edd's torso. Eddy had no right to do what he did. Ed, the loveable oaf, had told Edd what had happened in his basement, and Marie told him what she could, although she was too scared at the time to notice any details.

Ed was a true friend to the end, and Edd knew it. He counted Ed innocent because a) he never actually DID anything and b) he'd seen that Big Ed would usually fallow the dominant force in any given situation. Which was why Eddy no longer held any such authority in the small group, Edd had seen to that personally.

Although he had professed to his "friends" that he had no feelings for the blue-haired Kanker, he still felt that he should do the chivalrous thing and make Eddy pay for his terrible actions. At the time Edd did not know the full extent of Eddy's crimes, but by the state Marie was in when she was found, they must have been bad. And so, shortly after returning his father's file to its rightful place on the wall he went to look for the two remaining Eds. Ironically enough, they were still in Ed's basement, Ed on his bed laughing hysterically over a copy of Chix Galore and Eddy sitting in Ed's chair, inspecting another worthless trinket left over as proof of his older brother's legacy in the Cul-de-sac. Edd opened the window and slid down onto the wooden table under it, and finally to the concrete foundation that made up the floor of the room.

"Where ya been Sock-head?" Eddy asked, not bothering to look up. He sat there so innocently as though nothing had transpired that morning. Ed chimed in with one of his nonsensical "Edisms"

"Double D, you missed it, I spun around on my head for 5 minutes and then I threw up!"

"Yeah," Eddy added, "you shoulda seen it, he… Hey what's up with YOU, Sock-head?" It was at that time that Eddy caught sight of Edd's expression. Edd was angry. Angrier than he'd ever been, and what's more was he wasn't quite sure why he was so upset. Wasn't this the same girl who made his life miserable on so many occasions before? Maybe it was because of what he had seen engraved on the tree, or how smug and innocent Eddy was acting but, something about what they'd done to her had enraged him and he wasn't about to take any crap from anyone right now. Without taking his eyes off of Eddy, who continued to regard him with growing befuddlement, Edd asked, "Ed, what happened?"

"Oh, is this about…" Eddy was cut short by Edd with a quick yet effective "Shut up! I was ASKING Edd!" By this time Ed had replaced his magazine under his pillow and sat up on his bed, looking at Edd.

Ed replayed the events of the morning vocally, although not without losing track of his point uncontrollably. Edd was patient enough though, and goaded Ed to continue until the point when Edd had come in to, as Ed put it "Rescue her from the clutches of Dr. Scam."

Now Edd felt an even greater hatred flowing through his veins, burning as though his blood had been replaced with gasoline.

"Eddy! What in god's name were you thinking! Do you realize what you did to her? You almost KILLED HER," he shouted. Eddy just looked at Edd with a smirk that invited Edd to try and do something about it. Truth be told, all Eddy had to do was have Big Ed jump into action and Edd's every effort would be for not. Ed was a nearly unstoppable juggernaut and Edd knew it.

Just then, almost as though an answer to his prayers, an idea popped into his mind. He slowly raised a finger and pointed menacingly at Eddy. "You will PAY for what you have done Eddy! I swear to GOD you will!" And then he began to walk toward the door. As he opened the door, emblazoned with a poster for Gore Fest, he noticed that Eddy did not appear to be worried. He continued to sit in the chair, a calm look about him.

"Ed?" asked Edd, "Would you please come with me?" Ed quickly ran over to the door with a token answer of "Buttered toast!" Edd felt that it wasn't fair to implicate Ed in the horrors that awaited Eddy. With Ed in tow, Edd climbed the stairs to ground level, and then the stairs leading up to the second story. Ed followed unaware, while Edd rehearsed his lines silently and erased all signs of his previous emotions from his face. As he topped the staircase, he turned left and then stopped at the first door on the right. "Ed, I want you to be very quiet," Edd instructed, "no matter what happens just please be quiet and let me do the talking. Can you do that for me?" Big Ed nodded and then continued to stare off into space, as he did so often. Edd took a deep breath and then knocked.

"Go away!" Sarah's voice answered. Edd listened for a second, straining to confirm his suspicion that Jimmy was not within Sarah's room with her. He evidently was not and so he knocked again. This time a series of stampings ensued and then the door was flung open. Sarah stood in the doorway, her hand on the inside doorknob, ready to slam the door shut in the event that she did not like what awaited her on the other side. Edd did not intend to disappoint her. "What do YOU want Double D?" she asked harshly.

Portraying as serious a demeanor as he could Edd said, "Oh, uh, Sarah. I do apologize for my frightfully rude intrusion on your person, but I thought you might like to know that Eddy has sold Jimmy's retainer," Edd lied. It was all he could do not to smile as he sealed Eddy's fate. He knew that what Sarah was capable of, would be sufficient to make Eddy's punishment adequate.

Sarah was fuming, "WHAT! He did WHAT!"

Edd realized that he would need to utilize this time to spare Ed her wrath. "Ed and I just found out about it, Ed had been assisting me with an experiment and after we had finished we decided to stop in and see our dear friend Eddy." 'Excellent, Ed's safe' he thought.

"Ooohh, WHERE IS HE?" Sarah demanded.

"I think he's in Ed's room, but…" he couldn't finish because she was already pushing the two out of her way. There was a mild pain as his body collided with a small inn table, but he knew that what Eddy was going to be going through would be far worse. He smiled, and chuckled to himself as he thought of the beautiful retribution.

Since that day, Eddy had taken the lowest position on the totem pole, due in no small part to the many threats of further violence Edd had made. After that encounter, Edd decided that it would be best to stay off the radar for a few days, mostly so that Eddy could let what had happened sink in and so that HE could help Marie recuperate further. It was during this time that they had grown closer, he had stayed by her bed for the following three days, assisting her in any way he could. In actuality it was HIS bed, but he did not want to move her for a while and she showed no interest in going back to her place. After recovering her lost blood and regaining her strength they went back to her place together. Since she wasn't bed ridden any longer, she was in need of some of her belongings. It was 2:00 in the morning when he took the still rather weak girl to the Park n' Flush trailer park. She requested that he stay outside of the trailer in the event that her sisters woke, but by the sounds of the snoring emitting from within, it was not likely. She was in an out in under minute holding both a garbage bag full of clothes and other belongings and a small metal box with a lock on the side. He wondered to himself if that was the box she had referred to in her testament.

After they got back to Edd's room, they talked for a while, about trivialities, and then about more serious matters. They began to speak of how long she planned on staying with him. It had been only mildly difficult to keep her a secret from his parents, but he began to doubt his own abilities. On top of that, his sleeping on the floor, where even now he lay comforted only be a pillow and a pair of jackets, was putting a significant dent in his sleep cycle. The previous morning he nearly missed his paper route, and after the episode with the other Eds, he was on thin ice as it was. They decided that she would give her sisters a few more days to go without her presence, and then she would return. Lee, by then, would have forgotten the incident as she hadn't the best memory, and of course May couldn't remember what she had for breakfast, which seemed to further constitute a perfect match for Ed she mused. They both laughed at this, trying to be quiet so as not to wake Edd's parents. Finally, Edd worked up the courage to enquire about the small metal box, and immediately, Marie became silent and her eyes began to look as though she was staring down an oncoming train.

Realizing his fault, Edd began to stumble through a change of subject. "Umm," he started, waving his hands wildly in front of him as if to negate what was said. "if you don't want to talk about it we…" He was cut off by Marie who said in a tone, the very definition of somber.

"Edd…, did you read what I wrote on that tree? Th-the one you found me under?"

Edd didn't know how to respond. Of course he did, but should he tell her?

"I…ummm well the thing is…that well…" Then he tried for the stupidest thing he could, "What tree?" Even as he said it, he mentally smacked himself for being so stupid. Apparently though, she didn't realize, either that or she didn't want to try and drag out an argument with him. The expression on her face, as she sat on his bed with her arms around her huddled legs, looking downward at nothing in particular told Edd that the latter was the case.

"Edd… I just want you to tell me the truth. Did you see the tree? Did you read it?" At that last sentence, she looked up again to face him, tears beginning to well up in her eyes. Instead of answering, Edd let out a sigh and looked down towards the floor. He rose from his jacket sleeping bag and headed towards his desk. He could feel her pleading eyes on him, even without looking back her way, as he crossed the room and probed his desk for his camera. After finding it he slowly moved toward his bed, simultaneously turning the power on and changing it to the view function. He chose the best picture and handed the camera to the distraught girl. It took no more than a second of her scrutiny before she set it down on the bed, obviously not wanting to see any more.

Edd was sure she was going to bust into tears, but instead only a single tear escaped her eye. Then she reached under the covers and fished out a small key. She then disengaged the lock on the small box and opened it.

They spent the remainder of the night looking through its contents. At first, it seemed almost painful for Marie, and Edd felt awkward and wanted to stop, but then after the praise she received for how well her third poem had come out things began to take on a much more cheerful air. She happily showed off the things within as a proud artist shows off a new painting at a gala. By the time they had finished it was 4:58 in the morning, and Edd needed to begin his paper route in a few minutes. But before that he decided that a good closer to the special night was in order. After she had replaced everything in her box and tucked it away Edd leaned close to her and hugged her tight. She was visibly taken off guard by this, and as he remembered, he had been a little surprised at his actions too, but then she relaxed and returned the embrace. They sat there for a few minutes, simply basking in the warmth that each other's body emanated. Finally, Edd whispered that he had to do his paper route so he'd have to go. She responded by letting go for a second and then applying a firm yet soft kiss to his lips. This surprised him terribly and his eyes shot open wide. While this happened, he noticed how calm and natural looking Marie was with this turn of events, and how beautiful. He relaxed more and returned the feeling that the kiss had brought.

The first bell of the day rung loudly, shaking Edd out of his day-dreaming. He nearly smacked his head on the desk as the arm that was supporting it, leapt up in surprise. Once he regained his composure, he looked toward the front of the room in time to see a rather pleased Marie, handing in her test along with a few of the other remaining students. He got up from his seat and slung his bag over his shoulder and joined her up at Mr. Arbezzi's desk. As he approached, he saw a repeat of the smile she had shot him earlier and knew that she had done well. He returned the smile and they both left the room together.


	3. Breakfast for 2?

Oh man, this took so long.   
sorry it took so long, I'm a huge procrastinator, even with stuff I want to do.

Enjoy all of you!

Oddly enough, this entire chapter was written on buses. Bus rides can be boring, and so I wrote this, but it took forever to transcribe it onto here. Fans of Ed, Edd, and Eddy, enjoy

Comments Comments Comments! I'm a Comment Addict

Previous comments,

"r u going 2 keep going with this?" -RavenandBB4life   
Well I guess so, thanks.

"Yes I read the fan fic you suggested before I read yours and both are very good in sucsession. I'm sorry if I don't have much to review about either of your fics though because my sister had the TV on really loud and I couldn't consentrate, but it was really good writing and the beginings of a plot. Write more! ;)" - FanofDa'EdBoyz  
Many, many thanks. And sorry for initially thinking you were a guy. (She's not)

"Great chapter I hope that you update soon." - Gambet   
Yeah, sorry about that.

"I know you haven't updated this story in a while, but I just wanted to let you know that it's really good. I red the fanfic that's the prelude to this a while ago and you do a good job in making this a great sequal. I hope you start updating again." - Dark Wolf Girl16  
Hey thanks, I liked his so much that I couldn't help myself.

(Note: All of my chapters are also on so are the rest of my writings)

Peach Creek High School was designed much like a college campus, though on a smaller scale. There were no indoor halls connecting the various buildings and, although rain was rather infrequent in Peach Creek, any precipitation made moving from class to class difficult. In mid-early spring though, the sun was out and shining as hard as ever, already the greater Peach Creek area was beginning to warm. Edd and Marie walked out of the Math Building, the warm sunshine splashing over them was a welcomed feeling compared to the overly-air conditioned structure.

Edd and Marie walked down the outdoor hallway, hands intertwined, a slight grin on Edd's face, matched by Marie. "You get form C?" Edd asked, breaking the silence.

"Yeah, I did… and so did you," she replied. Edd gave a knowing smile and glanced to the azure-haired young woman to his left.

"So _how _exactly were you able to arrange that?" he asked inquisitively, his mind already putting together the possibilities. She had always had a knack for getting what she wanted, the proof was holding her right hand and walking down the cement path with her.

"Eddward! How _could _you?" she exclaimed, her sarcastic disbelief at his accusation made Edd chuckle slightly. "I thought that you trusted me to take the test honestly." She saw that Edd's smile had grown, her ruse hadn't tricked him in the slightest, although she hadn't really intended for it to. She looked into his eyes for a second and then continued. "They were all Form C. Teachers have been doing that for years, claiming that there were 4 different forms just to keep kids from cheating."

"And how did you come by this revelation?" Edd asked.

"Well," she began, blushing slightly, "May and I were looking for answer sheets in another class a few years back, and we… well I figured it out." Edd chuckled and decided to change the subject. That part of her life was over, she had taken the test honestly, and Edd's knowledge of that fact made him happy.

"So," Edd began, "can I buy a pretty girl like you some breakfast?"

Marie, being the quick thinker that she was, immediately donned her "Nazz voice" and said, "Sure Double-D, that'd be _awesome_!" Her "Nazz voice", as she liked to call it, was an overly-lisped valley girl articulation, that didn't sound much like its namesake. Despite that fact, one could always associate it with Nazz , and Marie's use of it always put a smile on Edd's face. Besides the ridiculous caricature of the blonde, it was funny hearing Marie call him "Double-D". She hadn't done that in a long time, and the fact was that few people to continue calling him that, which he preferred. Edd started to laugh lightly as they began walking toward the parking lot.

Marie's use of the Nazz voice began a few years ago in good-naturedly mocking Edd's (and consequently all of the males from Rathink Avenue) infatuation with her. Although, the only one of the boys from the Cul-de-sac who had any chance with her was Kevin, and their relationship hadn't lasted past the two-week mark. Many rumors surfaced about their separation, most of them painting Kevin in a very negative, and "small" light, but the real reason was known only to them. Marie still used the voice though, more for the fact that it made Edd smile, and not so much for the cruel ridicule of the girl.

Although, to say that Marie liked Nazz wouldn't be exactly true though either. She had harbored a mild contempt for her for some time. Most likely due to the simple fact that Nazz was always the girl that Marie had wanted to be. As long as Marie had known her, she had been popular, pretty, and worshiped by the opposite sex. These feelings had diminished a bit after the _incident_, but a small part of her still felt the same feelings, even though she had Edd.

As they walked, Marie gave Edd's hand a squeeze. Edd looked at her, not slowing, and replied with the same action, a wordless expression of their adoration for one another. Finally, he broke the silence, asking the question he had wanted to ask since stepping out of Mr. Arbezzi's classroom, "Did you pass?"

Her smiles in class were reassuring, but he was still rather un-easy. She hated that class, hated math _period_, and so his concern was understandable. It took a good deal of effort for her to get through it, but she managed with his help. "What do _you_ think?", she answered, the smile still adorning her face. Edd jerked to a halt, and Marie followed suit, turning to face him. Edd's face was serious in every way, and this alone pulled the smile from her face.

"_Did you pass?_" he repeated, sounding even more solemn than he looked. She immediately understood why. She had always struggled at math, and Edd was a saint for helping her. Math was simply not her subject, she saw no point in it, and wondered how anyone else could. This test though, had proven to be manageable. She was able to tackle some of the questions with minimal effort, and only a few of them gave her trouble. She was confident that she had passed, but it would not have been possible without Edd's help. Had Mr. Arbezzi been teaching a Creative Writing class, there wouldn't have been any problem at all, she had always been somewhat of a wordsmith.

Her smile returned from its brief absence and she placed an assuring hand on Edd's shoulder. "You worry too much, y'know that?" she said. Edd's expression changed to confusion from its previous somberness. "Besides," she continued, "I've been getting some help from this one smart guy I know." She punctuated her sentence by reaching up and planting a small kiss on his cheek, miraculously producing a grin on his formally confused visage.

"That a fact?" he said, through his new smile. "must be a sucker for a pretty face," he concluded.

"Oh he is," Marie stated, turning back towards the direction of the parking lot and returning to her earlier gait, dragging Edd along with her. "I suppose I could get him to do just about anything for me," she giggled, while Edd caught up. "_Really_? Sounds like the poor guy's fallen for you"

"Maybe. And maybe I've fallen for him too. Maybe he's _the one_."

"Hey now!" Edd protested falsely. Marie's only response was that endearing toothless smile of hers, her eyes closed and head cocked to one side. This smile was as always, accompanied by another life-affirming hand squeeze.

The parking lot was still relatively vacant, save for some cars belonging to other students with classes at that time of day. Needless to say, this left a great deal of spots open. Edd's Lincoln was situated near the street on the right hand side of the lot. The car chirped twice as he disengaged the alarm remotely. They walked up to the car, but both of them stopped at the rear, where Edd opened the trunk, also remotely. The lid began to rise on pneumatic lifts, showing that the trunk didn't contain the token spare-tire, jack, and tire-iron, but something entirely different. Unlike most trunks, Edd's contained a small, yet surprisingly well stocked breakfast buffet, complete with a small table set that folded out from underneath the trunk lid.

As the lid came to rest at the top of it's arc, the interior came alive, the small motors , driving several movements. A small carousel in the middle began to rotate, and twin conveyor belts ran, lengthwise, through the Lincoln's spacious trunk. A wide variety of breakfast dishes presented themselves, ranging from eggs and bacon to cantaloupe and honeydew melon. Edd grabbed the folding table, and canvas camping chairs from the lid and began to set them up in the vacant parking space next to his car, while Marie got a plate from the left side of the buffet, and perused the extensive selection. By the time that Edd had finished with their makeshift breakfast nook, she was already walking over, holding a plate of fried eggs, hash browns, honeydew melon and a glass of OJ. She sat down at the table and waited for Edd to return with his usual, 2 eggs (scrambled) a piece of toast with strawberry jam, and a cantaloupe with a glass of skim milk. The two of them sat and ate leisurely, since the _first_ class of the day didn't start for another half an hour, they were permitted their relaxed pace.

Shortly after they began, Edd heard a distinct rolling sound approach from the main parking lot entrance behind him. With toast in had, he turned to see Jonny skating toward them. He was dressed in his PC Swim team shirt, a pair of long khaki shorts, and sandals. The sound of his hard plastic wheels on the cracked asphalt was noisy enough to be heard from far off, so Edd had some time to eat before Jonny's got within talking distance. He polished off the remainder of his toast, just as the bald-headed young man rolled to a stop near the two. A quick stomping of the tail brought the nose of the board straight to his hand, revealing the grinning face, emblazoned on the bottom of the deck.

"Why, hello there Jonny…Plank," Edd greeted, reaching for a glass of milk to wash down the toast . Marie, unable to talk as she had a bite of melon in her mouth, smiled politely and nodded. Finishing the remainder of his milk, Edd continued; "How goes things?"

"Hey Edd, hey Marie, me and Plank are fine, but I gotta say, we're a bit hungry."

Edd neatly wiped his mouth with his napkin, and said "well we can't have that, now can we?" Marie shook her head, in agreement. "Let's see what we can do about that," Edd finished, getting up from his chair and simultaneously clicking his fob to open the trunk. "As you can see, plates are there on the left…" Edd trailed off and whispered to Jonny that he and Marie would rather spend some time alone. A simple double clicking of the tongue confirmed that he understood, and he began to make his selections. Edd smiled gratefully and waited for Jonny to choose, so he could reset the system again.

Jonny had been the only one from Rathink Ave. who, initially, didn't care all that much about Edd and Marie's relationship. Most of the cul-de-sac's residents either had their own _mostly_ silent reservations about it, or would unceasingly bother the two about it. Jonny had been quiet about it, which was strange considering his habitual questioning of everything. And so, albeit painfully ironic, Edd and Marie confided in Jonny…and Plank of course.

Jonny knew more about their relationship than anyone else, far more even than Edd's friends or Marie's sisters. They _knew_ of course, but their knowledge was rather limited. Coincidentally, Edd and Marie were the observant ones of their respective trios. Ironically, the ones who were closest to the two of them stayed in the dark about their relationship the longest . They had been the last to figure it out, and ever since, they gave them grief for it, although not as much as would have been expected.

As much as Johnny knew about the two of them, which was a surprising amount, he was completely ignorant about the day of the _incident_. The extent of his knowledge about their relationship's start was kept very limited. But just about everything else was known by him. He occasionally played the mediator in the few and far between, nonetheless intense, disputes they had. He and Plank of course. Plank seemed to provide the majority of sage wisdom, even in the later years of high school, everyone still entertained the idea of his sentience. But it seemed as though that was the only thing about Johnny that had remained the same since those days.

Johnny's head was still as big as ever, but his body had caught up with it to some extent over the years. He was now taller and thinner, a great body for racing. When they began their freshman year, Johnny became interested in school athletics. Since Sophomore year, he had owned the conference in all things track and swimming. His status in these sports were points of pride for him, and he took them seriously, which was also strange considering. He had never been one to take _anything_ too seriously. But the fruits of his commitment hung from his ceiling by red, white, and blue ribbon as testament to his accomplishments, and his pride. In the mornings, just about the time Edd was waking up, Johnny could be heard running up and down the fences of the neighborhood, or swimming in the creek. It was one of the only times when you wouldn't see him without his wooden compadre, whom had also undergone a fair amount of change.

Plank, ever the thrill seeker, one day suggested that Johnny take up skateboarding, using him as the board. For the first, and so far only, time Johnny came to Edd for help with _his _relationship (platonic though it was). Edd counseled Johnny, even introduced him to the sport, and before long Johnny was tearing up the streets, with Plank having a fantastic view of the pavement rushing by. The only condition was that Johnny wouldn't do any grinds but 50-50s, for fear of hurting Plank further.

Even without the use of most grinds, Johnny, and Plank, had become pretty good, even competing a few times.

"Well, we've got to get going," Johnny said holding his plateful of eggs and sausage. He put Plank down, and pushed off, lazily, towards campus, but then stopped suddenly, looking at Marie over his shoulder. Edd was just closing his trunk, when he heard Johnny say, "Hey Blue!" Edd looked at Johnny, and saw a flicker of a smile flash across his lips. "You going to that dance tonight?" Of course he was just messing around, but a little bit of Edd became angry at Johnny every time he did this. Marie turned around in her chair, looking like she was backing a car out of a parking spot.

"I was thinking about it, why?" She had obviously caught on to him, and was playing along. Edd was on the way back to his chair, and saw a mischievous glint in her visible eye, as he passed. He couldn't help but smile slightly at her face, as she sustained the ruse.

"Well, I was wonderin if you were goin with anyone, cuz if not….y'know, I guess you could go with me, I guess." Johnny was pretending to be shy, not something he had ever been, and so his performance was unconvincing.

"Really? Well…yeah, I'd love to go with you. I was gonna do this _loser _a favor and go with him, but… eh he'll get over it."

"Great, pick ya up at 7:00?"

"Sure, see ya then lover!" with that, she rose her hand as high as it could go, and flapped it up and down rapidly, mimicking the Elizabethan style of waving. Johnny began skating off as she said her last "line" and weaved dramatically between random pebbles and cracks, his breakfast still in one hand. Edd returned his attention to Marie, who was still waving. Even though he knew that both of them were simply playing around, he couldn't shake the sickly feeling in the pit of his stomach, that there _could have _been something between them.

He put it out of his mind as best he could, "Some loser huh?"

Feigning surprise, Marie turned around quickly, and responded uneasily. "Oh…y-you _heard_ that?" Then she put on a stuck-up attitude, crossed her arms, and put her nose in the air, facing away from him. "Well I've made my decision, so _there_." But this time, she couldn't keep up appearances. Her lips began quivering as she struggled not to laugh.

"Hmm. I see… So then when's the wedding?" That was the straw that broke the camel's back, and a hearty laugh burst forth from between her vainly pursed lips. She got up, still finishing her laugh, and walked over to Edd's chair. She sat on his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck, a toothy smile still slashed across her face.

"Oh now don't tell me you forgot."

Edd sat up in his chair, enjoying the contact with his azure-haired angel. He placed his hands on her sides, and asked, "Forgot what?"

Marie leaned in for a kiss, but stopped just short of his lips and whispered, "_We're_ already married," she said, punctuating the statement by pressing her lips to his for a brief moment.

As she pulled away, Edd finally remembered what she was referring to, "Ah, the _haunted house_." After a short pause, while he stared into her eyes, he added, "Did you really have to make Ed drag us down the street after?"

Mirroring Edd's smile, Marie replied with, "Well it wasn't my fault that you couldn't keep up. Maybe I should have _ridden_ you a bit _harder_."


	4. Lunch for 1?

LOOOOOOOONNNGGGGG Author's Notes sorry

Well hello everyone! I'd like to thank all my loyal _reader_ for sticking with me and my story (I'm kidding, I know I have more than ONE reader…right…right?). I know it's been a little over a year since the last chapter, and for that I am sorry. But, good news for EVERYONE, Chapter 4 is not only the longest one to date, but also the coolest! (ok, ok, self aggrandizement, but yeah I'm actually really proud of this one)

Oh, but the good news just keeps on comin!

So I was just finishing this one up, when I thought to mahself "Self," (that's what I call myself, 'self'. "Why is it that you just…write these stories out like this?" (My style is little more than me getting a vague or somewhat solid idea of what I want in my head and then writing it out as it comes to me, not even knowing where to end a chapter until I do.) So, why do I do it this way, "when you've got a good idea where it's going?" And so, I sat down and worked up a wee plan for the rest of the story. I could never bring myself to write an outline of any thoroughness for ANYTHING, but this at least gives me something to go off of. Right, so there are going to be 4 more chapters, making a grand total of 8. The point? Well, with a bit more of a concrete plan to this thing now, I can begin to crank out the remaining chapters a lot quicker I hope. We'll see eh? Keep reading!

Now, why this one took so long; the fact is, I was lazy and procrastinated a lot, plain n' simple. And so, I'm asking for any of you who read this and enjoy it, to email me periodically (as in more than just once) and make sure I'm working on this story, to "check up on me" if you will. I'm NOT kidding, sometimes I just need a boot in the ass to get me (and keep me) going. So yeah, just don't be a jerk about it, it'll really help me out, and you won't have to wait as long for a new chapter. Isn't that good news? My e-mail should be on my home page, if it isn't, just send me a message and it'll go there anyway.

Kay so chapter 4, here we are again, so please read the previous ones, and as with all the chapters, be sure you have read RunetheElf's story; EEnE Blood of Obsession. Great one-shot, read it before you read any of mine. Or there will be hell to pay!

And now, a little thank you to all those who actually read my little story (and PROVE that they've done so.) WE DON'T WRIRT FOR RECOGNITION, BUT IT SUCKS ALL THE FUN OUT OF IT IF YOU DON'T COMMENT!

FanofDa'EdBoyz: "Cute. I like how Double D and Marie talk to each other like the other one is someone else. I also like how Johnny developed. He has always been one of my favorite characters (next to Double D and Rolf) and I love the idea of using Plank as a skate board but isn't Plank a bit small for that? I really think it's all really cute. So... if Johnny doesn't know how the relationship started what does he know. I mean what would he know that would be considered so much more than anyone if not that? (insert fake innocent smile here) Very cute. P.S. Don't be sorry that you thought I was a dude. It's all good."

Well shank you very much, and glad you like this one. (For those of you who don't know, FanofDa'EdBoyz is my editor. I have her look over my work before I put it up here, and I am immensely glad for her help. Any of you out there, get yourself an editor, they help a lot!)

Ec1o: "GREAT STORY! I look forward to reading further, keep up the great work!"

Thanks, I'll try! But only if you guys try and leave more substantial comments (I'm a comment addict)

Oluwatono: Plz will ant one make a m rated ed story with sex lies sex violence grudges more sex more lies all off this raped in college lust and angst plz make 1 it will be a hit call it sins of an edd. Plz someone plz comment on this my user name is ecntr and my mail is.

PRESUMED TRANSLATION; "Please, will anyone make an M-rated Ed, Edd, n' Eddy story with sex, lies, sex, violence, grudges, more sex, more lies, all of this "raped in college" lust and angst. Please make one, it will be a hit. Call it, "Sins of an Ed." Please, someone please comment on this. My user name is ecntr, and my mail is…"

( O .O Ummmm… yeah. Serious commenting only peepulz! And, while I'm definitely not against such things, I've been very put-off on them since the vast majority of them have much the same…ummmm…style, as the comment previous. If you must write M-rated stories like _those_, the least you could do is learn the language you wish to write it in!

Maybe I would, but not only am I busy but… well, I dunno. But yeah, that aside, Serious Comments Please!!! And, I don't think it needs to be said, but please ignore this ass. Thanks.)

AmarieC: (You like to comment don't ya? Well that's cool.) "Okay, okay, it is now 1:41 a.m. man. I have not read so much fanfic in.. oh, I have amnesia, I forgot. Wait, I forgot I have amnesia. Well that was good, down to earth, and detailed. Detail girl is now done."

Well, good commenting, bit vague though. Thankies for liking my work so much! More specific comments appreciated!

Well, that's all for that. I just like to thank those who feel like reading. If it weren't for you guys (well all of you except the one) then there'd be no reason for me to do what I do. Like I said, this one is one that I'm really proud of, so I want LOTS of commenting! If you like what happens, GREAT lemmie know what in particular you liked, if you didn't like something EVEN BETTER! Please do the same, only with the stuff in particular you **didn't** like.

But yeah, I had better stop this before you guys get angry. Enjoy Chapter 4, and get on me about updating! I need you guys!

Thanks,

-N

Marie sat in her Fourth-year creative writing class, staring at one of the colorful posters on the wall, which suggested that writing was a "Tool for Your Brain." She knew better that it was far more useful to the heart, but it was a moot point so she didn't think about it too in depth. She was simply attempting to survive another one of Mrs. McCully's lethally boring lectures on "conventions." Marie often thought that it was strange how much attention Mrs. McCully emphasized punctuations, proper grammar, and the like in a _Creative _Writing Class. Somehow, didn't fit. She turned her head lazily to where the woman harped about correct comma usage, when to use it, how to use it, where one can use it, how to avoid using it too much, something along that line.

She paced about the front of the room, in a dress that was far less colorful than the poster Marie had just been looking at. This served only to emphasize how odd it was that someone like her was teaching a class that stressed creativity. Marie tuned her out and focused on what she was going to do for lunch that day. Since she had been studying with Edd all week, they decided that a little time apart (in Edd's case, with his friends) today would be good. They would be spending all night together anyway. She thought about finding out what her sisters would be doing, but she knew it would be nothing good and scrapped that idea. She weighed a few more ideas, and then decided that a simple lunch alone at the back of campus would suffice. The rear part of campus was where the football, and baseball fields were, and also a few open fields of grass in between. Somewhat near the middle was a large oak she liked to climb and write in. She'd eat and spend lunch hour there.

With business taken care of, her mind turned to more… _pleasurable _thoughts. She thought of that night. The dance. She had been looking forward to the, blandly named, Spring Dance for a while now, and her mind was crammed with thoughts regarding the evening. What she'd need to do between class and then, if her sisters had found her dress yet, what they might've done to it if they had. She'd kill them if they had done anything to it. She had looked for hours to find that one since t was the only one within her price range that she felt she looked good in. She thought to herself at how Edd was going to look in his tux…and how he'd look _out _of it. She twitched slightly, surprised by her own thoughts. She wasn't one who constantly thought about things like that, but she'd admit she had been thinking more and more about it recently.

In all their five years together, she and Edd had never really done anything. Most of it, she thought, had to do with her mother. She hadn't been a very good influence on Marie and her sisters. Marie didn't share a father with either of them, which obviously said something about the way their mother lived. Marie, knew that she never wanted to be like that, and so remained a virgin, even though the same could not be said about Lee or May. She avoided the subject at all times, and she loved Edd all the more for not forcing it. He was a saint. She knew that he was interested, he was a guy after all. Maybe she could "reward" him tonight for his patience.

The thought made her smile uncontrollably, and she covered her grin with one of her hands to avoid drawing attention to herself. She failed, Mrs. McCully ceased her rant, and looked in her direction. Marie changed to a less conspicuous posture, are feigned interest again. Mrs. McCully continued her speech.

Marie didn't like the woman, and it was pretty obvious (to her at least) that Mrs. McCully didn't like her either. Marie was pretty sure it was due to the fact that, despite her lack of attentiveness in class, she always wrote phenomenal papers (including correct usage of all _conventions_). Coincidentally, Marie had always received the highest grades on her work, in all her previous classes…until the 2nd or 3d assignment she turned in to Mrs. McCully. Since then, the woman had always been a bit wary of Marie, and usually a bit harsh. Half the time in class, she seemed to be searching for something to reprimand Marie on.

Mrs. McCully was far too into involved in her speech to bother with Marie today. Which was just as well because there was only 5 minutes remaining until lunch. Marie resumed her thoughts on the coming night. It was weird, she thought. Even after she and Edd had gotten together, she had been anything but "girly". But when it came to things such as dances, and the like, she could be as bad as Nazz even. Marie grimaced, as she always did when the blonde crossed her mind. The weird part about it was that, while she hated Nazz, a small part of her knew that Nazz was still largely who she wanted to be.

Nazz currently headed the PCH Cheerleaders, and when football season was over, she was involved in Volleyball, and Softball in the Spring. She held a myriad of political positions, and through some unexplainable force was able to attract all manner of would-be significant others. From the most attractive and sought-after boys, to even the least desirables of _both _genders. She seemed to have a strangely magnetic personality, and at the same time, remained somewhat humble. She didn't date exclusively the most popular guys, she actually did date around the field, save for the other gender. Though it _was_ rumored that she occasionally strode on the other side of the fence, no one had ever seen or said anything. She always had the most perfectly quaffed hair, the latest fashions, the most expensive accessories, and even drove a brand new Miata (well new when she got it some 2 and a half years ago). Miraculously, her parents seemed to be out of town whenever she wanted to throw a party, and she was always able to keep the police away from, what Marie had heard, was a heavy drinking crowd. She seemed the type who somehow had all the time in the world to do whatever she wanted, and as such, **did** everything. It sickened Marie, and made her terribly envious at the same time.

She was jolted out of her thought-coma by the bell, and blinked herself back to reality. She reached under her chair for her bag (she hadn't even touched it since dropping it there at the beginning of class) and quietly slung it. Since she had sat the farthest back in the class, she was the last out which garnered her a quick, sharp glance from Mrs. McCully. Something that Marie thought, comically, that she simply wouldn't have felt "complete" without.

As soon as she had left the secondary parking lot and was walking through the seldom mown grass, Marie flipped her bag around her torso and began digging through it to find her lunch. It wasn't until she was halfway to the large oak that she did. She took a bite of her egg-salad sandwich and immediately regretted it. In her early morning rush to get out the door she had not only neglected to find some method of keeping her perishable sandwich fresh, but had also evidently made it with the _wrong _eggs. She spat out the mouthful of unpleasantness and tossed the remainder of the sandwich in the bag she had taken it from.

As she reached the tree she simultaneously pulled the only other amount of food from her lunch. She confirmed that the baggy indeed contained four Oreos, then replaced it into her backpack, and re-slung it. She wouldn't be able to climb the tree unless her hands were free. She hopped up the trunk and boosted herself up the tired bark with a foot-hold found in an old knothole. As soon as she reached the first leafy sections of the tree, she felt a slight decline in temperature, which she enjoyed, although it wasn't especially hot at this time of year. She stopped her climb at the first sturdy branch, and carefully positioned herself on it, leaning her back on the main trunk. With the adjustment of a few things in one of her pockets, and the tearing out of a pesky twig, digging into her side, she finally was able to relax.

In an odd sort of convenience, Marie was able to find another branch, by which to hang her pack, making it easily accessible. Her little perch also allowed her a spectacular view of the surrounding area, with only a few spots all that obscured by the tree's thick plumage of fresh leaves. She reached into her sack and retrieved the baggy of cookies, opened it, and took a small bite out of the first, intending to savor each morsel. After all, she wasn't going to eat her sandwich. As she sucked and chewed on the cookie, she closed her eyes, and once again became lost in thought.

She thought of how she would normally spend lunch, with Double-D. She still thought of him as Double-D, even though he disliked the name. Not long ago, he decided that he needed to be more mature, more adult. Another odd idea, since he was always far more adult than anyone else his age, just a lot more naïve. But she still respected his wishes, even though it took awhile to get used to simply calling him "Ed". She thought that the whole thing was sort of stupid though, she liked "Double-D", mostly because that was who he was when they had gotten together all those years ago. She opened her mouth, but not her eyes, and placed the remaining half of the cookie in her mouth. Then she wondered why Double-D Still allowed his friends to call him that, and not her. Maybe she should try it again, play innocent about it, while at the same time testing the waters. She reasoned that this would work, and calmly reached for the remainder of the chocolaty snacks.

It seemed a rather small lunch, and she knew that she'd be hungry later, but she wanted to be sure not to spoil her appetite (there was yet another common motherly mannerism she had never been told) since Double-D had told her that he was going to do something special with dinner that night. He was often romantically secretive about his plans with her, and she loved when he was. She pondered all the places he potentially had made reservations at, and then thought that he might be cooking for her. He rarely cooked for her, and although he wasn't very confident in his skills, she, as well as some others, thought he was an excellent chef. Her excitement rose at the thought of him, wearing his tuxedo shirt and tie, sans the jacket, standing next to the stove in his house, his back turned to her so as to conceal the dish up until the time it was placed on the table in front of her.

Marie was shaken out of her daydreams by a particularly heavy, and sudden gust of wind,, making even the sturdy branch she was on shake slightly. As she was looking around at the verdant leaves around her, wondering where such a sudden breeze came from, she suddenly became aware that someone was approaching.

Much like a lioness waiting in a tree for her prey, Marie shifted herself around to better spy on the approaching girl. The "intruder" wore dark, heavy clothing which seemed converse to the weather. The long-sleeved jacket ran to below her waist, and she wore a short dark-denim skirt over long black leggings that traveled the length of her short legs to her boots, which matched the black color of her jacket. Were it not for her long, blinding red hair, Marie wouldn't have been able to tell that it was Sarah, big Ed's sister, who was drawing near.

Sarah had aged, but not grown in height significantly. She still seemed to be the same height in relation to others around her. About two or three years ago, she had donned a new persona, though it was still hard and unforgiving. This occurred about the same time she had formed her band. In her Sophomore year she, together with 2 other girls with equally luminous red hair, formed the Red Poets Society, a play on a Robin Williams film. The name was derived from the flaming red hair of all the band members, and the poetic nature of their songs. Her band had little difference from any other high-school band. Dreams of getting signed by an indie record label, and gigs paying less than the hourly minimum wage highlighted their "career." Their popularity among their peers was nominal, though it was given a boost by the mere fact that it was an all-girl band. The majority of their fans were girls who supported them only as part of the "fem-power" movement. Either them, or the more "boisterous" males, who were interested primarily in the band's figures. In either case, few if any of _either_ fans were truly interested in their music. The few real fans they had, were die-hards though. Sarah sang lead which was somewhat ironic considering her voice had been pretty gravely all her life,

She continued walking toward Marie's hiding place and appeared to be about to walk past, but then began slowing. It wasn't until now that Marie noticed that Sarah was stammering as she walked, giving the appearance that she might have been drinking recently.

As she approached the tree, she slowed to a stop, halting just a foot or two away from the gnarled bark of the oak. Then Marie noticed something else about the girl. Faint at first, but still she could hear that Sarah was crying. Something about what was transpiring gave Marie a chill.

Sarah dropped to her knees on the ground in front of the tree, and bent her head down to look into her lap, her sobs had now grown more audible. Marie's curiosity had peaked now, and at the same time a small frown had now formed on her face, without her knowledge. She didn't like this, she knew little about the girl personally, but knew that she had always been tougher than nails. Marie began to wonder what could have brought her to this emotional state. Sarah let out another big sob, and then reached into the left pocket of her jacket, withdrawing something that was evidently small enough to be concealed in her closed hand. She brought the object in front of her downward aimed face. Were it not for her hair being in the way, Marie would have been able to see the object she cradled in her open palms.

Marie began to move along her branch, slowly so as to not attract attention. Before moving very far though, Sarah shifted her hair back with a flick, exposing the small, folded up leaf of notebook paper. Occasionally, a small wet spot would spontaneously appear on the crinkled note, a tear. On the side that faced upward something was written, though Marie's eyes weren't quite good enough to read the stylized block lettering. Marie assumed it was the name of the "addressee," possibly Sarah herself, though the first and largest letter of the name didn't resemble the letter "S." Marie squinted to see what was written on the paper, but before she could focus on it, Sarah tore it in half and threw it aside.

Sarah reached into the same pocket from which she had withdrawn the note, and repeated her previous routine, including concealing the object with her hair. Marie now noticed that the redhead's breathing had quickened, and wondered why. Sarah let out a particularly violent sob that sounded almost like a sneeze, then raised her head slightly, as though looking at something on the trunk of the tree. With her head now elevated, Marie was clearly able to see the dull grey razor blade that was held in Sarah's open hand. Her eye's widened, and she quietly hissed to herself, "Shit!" This did nothing to gain Sarah's attention though.

Sarah, delicately grasped the blade between her thumb and forefinger, and lifted it out of her hand. With her still free, remaining fingers, Sarah pulled up the left sleeve of her jacket slightly, exposing the soft, white skin along her forearm. Her hands were a bit shaky, but did not hesitate. She made a fist with her left hand, to better expose the large vein in her upturned wrist. Slowly, shakily, Sarah lowered the blade to her wrist, arcing her head skyward again, her eyes clenched shut, tears flowing streaming.

"No!" Marie screamed.



Edd nonchalantly walked over to a long wooden bench in a courtyard that divided a few of the buildings on campus. He casually leaned against a tree that was next to the bench, and waited. He had gotten out of his Anatomy/Physiology class a bit early, and there were few students around, though that would likely change in a few minutes when the lunch bell rang. He held his backpack over his shoulder with one hand and looked at his watch, only about 2 minutes. He dropped his bag and fished around his pocket for his wallet. Once he had brought out the small, leather billfold he examined its interior, finding a fifty, two twenties, a five and a pair of tickets to that night's dance. Plenty of money for lunch, and then dinner later on that night.

As he was replacing his wallet, he became aware of footsteps, running steps that were increasing in volume. He glanced over his shoulder, and saw Jimmy run-jogging in his direction. As though he didn't already have Edd's attention, Jimmy yelled, "Edd, hey Edd!" His voice echoed against the walls of the open air courtyard, amplifying it slightly.

Edd winced as the relative silence of the halls was violently shattered. "Jimmy!" he hissed, "Keep it down, there are students still trying to learn!"

Jimmy jogged up to Edd, and said, "With 2 minutes left? I doubt _that _silly," he sneered good naturedly. Quickly, he remembered what he needed to talk to Edd about. "Oh, yes…ummm Edd? You're going to the dance tonight right?" Were there more people around, Edd might have felt uncomfortable all of a sudden, but he took the question normally, though remained somewhat nervous.

"Yes, why do you ask?" he replied, curious of where the conversation was headed.

"Well, I was making plans for me and my date for tonight, and everything was set up except how we're getting _to _the dance." Edd knew already what Jimmy's point was already, but allowed the boy to continue. In apparent worry about this flaw, Jimmy began to speak faster, slurring his words somewhat. "And…the thing is that I've made all the plans, and reservations and _now _I have nothing to show for it! So _now_ I-I-I-I-I-I," in his nervous state, Jimmy reached for his retainer. When worried or anxious, Jimmy would often fiddle with his head-gear, the problem now was that he had been without any orthodontic equipment for about six months, and so Jimmy only grasped in futility at the air in front of his convulsing lips.

Edd grasped the boy's shoulders, steadying him, and calmly said, "Jimmy. Hey…hey!" making a snapping noise with his fingers near Jimmy's face. This woke Jimmy from his stupor. "Jimmy," Edd continued, "you don't _wear_ those anymore." Jimmy's gaze shifted from Edd's eyes to his hand, which was still frozen, in a vain attempt to grasp something that wasn't there. Jimmy, attempting to save face, reverted to a toothy smile, and quickly thrust both hands behind his back.

While still small for his age, Jimmy had grown quite a bit. In his adolescence, he began to bulk up a bit, and now was considerably less the weakling he once was. Regardless, his personality had not changed much, and he was still a bit of a "dandy," constantly worrying about his looks, and taking pleasure in more…"girly" endeavors. He had grown his hair out slightly, and straightened it, so now it resembled a half-hearted attempt at a southern California surf bum's mane. Constantly trying to maintain the latest style, he was dressed in khaki shorts, and a small white T-shirt from a name brand store, covered by a button-up shirt from another. Through it all, though he was unmistakenably Jimmy.

He chaired the cooking club, and was also the only male cheerleader. His free time was usually spent reading the latest issues of every trendy magazine printed in the English language. Usually alone. Edd now began to wonder who it is that he meant by "date". 'Sarah?' he thought, '…no, no that _can't_ be it. He's-' Edd's thoughts were cut off by the shrill ringing of the bell, ending class. This shocked Jimmy out of his coma, and he continued with his inquiry. Realizing, there was only a minute or two before the guys arrived, Edd decided to speed things up.

Before Jimmy had uttered two words, Edd cut him off, "Jimmy…what time, and _where_ are your reservations?

Jimmy was momentarily stunned, apparently he hadn't expected Edd's answer to be positive, at least not this soon. A smile rapidly carved itself on the boy's face. "Oh Double-D! Thank you _so_ much!" the boy exclaimed, and embraced Edd, making him feel quite uncomfortable.

"N-Nnno thanks necessary Jimmy, just…where and what time." Remembering himself, Jimmy ended the hug and stood back a bit, much to Edd's relief. "And Jimmy, it's Edd now, remember?"

"Oh…please forgive my rudeness, I was just…anyway, yes…We've got a 6:30 reservation at Anatolia, so about…six, I suppose."

"Fine, I can do that," Edd replied, then thought for a second. "No, is it alright if I make it a bit earlier? 5:50?"

"S-sure," said Jimmy, a bit uneasy about the security of his arrangements, "why?"

"I'm…well I'm going to be doing something for Marie, and I'll need some time to…prepare. Listen, be by my residence, at precisely 5:50 ok? Not a minute sooner, or you'll be in the way." Jimmy nodded in accord, "After you and your…date are finished, try calling…and you may have to wait for a short time, I can-"

"Jimmy!" a voice from Edd's left cut off his briefing. Edd, shifted his gaze to find the source of the call and was surprised to notice a girl, walking briskly toward the two of them. As she neared, she smiled, and opened her arms.

"Mimi darling!" Jimmy exclaimed, closing the short distance between them, and embracing her. After a second, the two of them loosened their hold on one another, looked at each other, and to Edd's utter astonishment, kissed.

Edd stood there, silently watching, until, Jimmy pulled away, and once again gave Edd his attention. Giggling slightly, Jimmy started, "Edd…this is Mimi…my ummm, date." His eyes darted around wildly as he introduced his date. Something about the whole thing made Jimmy a bit nervous, Edd reasoned that many guys would be a bit nerve-wracked and Jimmy, of all people, shouldn't be an exception. Edd made a nod of pleasantries at the girl and relaxed a little.

'Mimi', Edd assumed her name was, was average height, with somewhat long brown hair, and nicely built frame. She wore a brown shirt that showed off the curves of her torso, and made for a stark contrast to her loosely fitting faded camo capris. Her attire gave off a somewhat masculine feel, a great offset, Edd thought, to Jimmy's natural…feminine side. She seemed to be the dominant one in the relationship, though not at all domineering. Edd liked her right away.

He smiled, as Mimi jumped, and hung on Jimmy briefly, throwing him off balance (she was slightly larger than his small frame) his arms flailed wildly to keep his balance. She grinned and clenched her eyes, making the all too overused "XD" face. She was very pleasant, and it didn't take long for Edd to decide on his answer. "Listen, Jimmy?" The two were still in a tug of war for balance, evidently not able to hear him. He wondered if he and Marie were ever this disgusting. The thought tickled him, and he chuckled out loud, somehow that got their attention.

"W-what?" Jimmy asked. Edd began to notice that more students were beginning to crowd the courtyard, and decided that it would be best to finish things up quickly. Though his reasons for not wanting to be seen with Jimmy had changed in the last few minutes, he didn't feel capable of talking his way out of the heckling he was sure to receive if he was seen anyway.

"Listen Jimmy, I'd be happy to chauffeur the ummm, two of you. Just…ummmm…" Edd was hastily, mentally checking that evening's schedule, for a opening. "It'll have to be a bit early, but…yes we said 5:50 right? Then be at my house just about then, that won't be a problem will it?"

Before Jimmy could say anything, Mimi responded with an emphatic, "Yes! That'll be great!"

"W-well I-I guess _so _then. Thank you so much Doub…Edd," Jimmy quipped, nearly slipping again. He continued to smile, and wave a little as Mimi began dragging him away, evidently they had other things to do for lunch. Edd watched them as they walked through the growing crowd. He continued to ponder their relationship. He hadn't been paying much attention to the boy, and hadn't met the _girl _until a minute ago. Just then, Edd's ears were assaulted by a loud string of profanities, making him immediately glad that he had gotten rid of the two.

"It's fuckin' _bullshit_!" Edd turned around to see Eddy and Ed approaching from the direction of the gym. Eddy, in one of his moods yet again, was ranting and raving at Ed about something that obviously had not gone his way. Edd sighed at his approaching friends, smirking simultaneously and silently wishing he still had studying to do with Marie.

"I'm tired of putting up with this fucking shit. That fuck-ass was looking when I did it! Why the fuck didn't he count it!" Eddy was clearly upset about his weights class. Ed responded with his mild grin.

"You coulda just done it again Eddy," Ed stated, in his usualy tone.

"Well, I'm not a fuckin' _retard,_ dumbass! I did it! Why the fuck shouldn't it have counted goddamnit!?" Eddy was in a real fury this time, though on any given day he could be seen spouting all manner of obscenity. The two approached, Eddy wearing a pair of khaki shorts, the remainder of his attire was black, including the shirt which advertised some skateboarding company that Edd wasn't familiar with. Apparently Eddy had decided that "Skater" was going to be the "New Eddy" today. He topped off his ensemble with a black cap worn backwards that looked as though it didn't fit his particularly large head. He had been attempting a slew of different personas since middle school, trying to find the one that made him popular, or at the very least, a lot of money. His attempts were as varied and changed as often as his scams. Recently he had been changing almost daily, indicating a subconscious panic, as the end of high school was coming. Edd often wondered at his plans, post high school. He hadn't pushed the subject though, as he was concerned with his own as well as Marie's. The fact was that there was only one thing he was able to "make" Eddy do, and even then he had needed help.

Beside Eddy, Big Ed sauntered in his usual idiomatic swagger. His big green coat had shrunk to an average-size jacket as Big Ed became _Bigger _Ed. Under his jacket, he wore a black Red Poets Society shirt, silently supporting his little sister. Edd had always marveled at his loyalty to Sarah, despite how often she made his life hell (sometimes unintentionally, usually otherwise). He was dressed in ripped blue jeans which remained low enough to nearly hide his shoes. His head was topped with a short mop of red hair, which hung over his eyes slightly. The most prevalent, though always expected, feature of his appearance was his slightly scrunched smile. The toothy grin was nearly almost carved on his lengthy face, and if it wasn't, that was reason enough to be scared.

Edd waited for his friends to arrive, smiling a little at Eddy's antics. As they finally got to Edd, he began to walk west toward the parking lot. He had learned that there was no point in trying to talk while Eddy was ranting, he would eventually tire himself out. He opted to listen for the point where Eddy was beginning to wind down, "…fuckin' asshole, I sweartogod! 'The hell we eatin' anyway Double-D?" Edd was a little surprised at his sudden stop, but not unhappy.

"Hmmm, I don't know Eddy, I was thinking Bueno Nacho, if you guys have enough." Edd smiled a bit, enjoying the bit of agitation that was to come. A little bit of his new deviousness that he had gotten from Marie.

"'The _fuck _is that supposed to mean?" Eddy started, shooting Edd a vicious glare.

"I got some money Eddy, but only if you be a _good_ boy," Ed taunted Eddy, patting him gently like a dog. Sometimes Ed seemed so clever, that it surprised Edd, this little quip was no exception, an even larger grin grew on his face. Eddy turned sharply toward Ed and slapped his arm off of is head. He groaned slightly at the jab, but must've realized that it still meant that he was going to get lunch for free so he held his tongue. The trio continued to walk in the parking lot toward the vehicle the other two Eds had arrived in.

Many times in their childhood, the Eds had wanted to break the bounds of their neighborhood. Whenever this happened, Ed would usually declare that his father had a shovel. Both of the other Eds dismissed it and continued about their plans, and Ed simply sunk back into his normal idle. It wasn't until he had begun working in his father's auto body shop that Edd and Eddy finally understood what Big Ed was talking about.

What Ed's father actually had was a solid black, lowered, window-tinted, completely rebuilt, 1969 _Chevelle_. Edd can remember the day they both saw it first, Eddy was actually drooling. They approached Ed's car from the rear, and took their respective positions, Edd usually sat in the back, and put up no argument otherwise today, Eddy had been suffering enough already apparently. Ed turned the ignition, and the engine roared to life. Ed had been the first of the three to get a license, mainly because he was a full year older than Edd, who in turn was three months older than Eddy. Edd tended to be a little slow in many respects, his academics, his chores, many things.

Many studies have shown that many children tend to do better at subjects they are interested in. Edd was always surprised that Ed took this principle and amplified it far beyond any expectations. His enthusiasm for his many pastimes ventured on scary, but occasionally he surprised everyone. His driving skills were impeccable compared even to Edd's and so he always felt fairly safe in the "Shovel," as Ed still called it, and he occasionally called it.

As they pulled out of the parking lot and were coming to the turn off, Ed asked, "Ummmmm…Double-D? Where are we going again?" Despite his excellent skills, he wasn't much for directions…or short term memory either. Edd gave a good-natured grin, and leaned over the center console to direct the driver.

He pointed a finger to the left, reasoning it would be best to just guide him there. "Uh, just take a left Ed, and then get in the far lane." As they got going, and while Eddy was perusing Ed's CD wallet (filled with soundtracks of many monster movies and a few vampire-related anime), Edd couldn't help but wonder how Marie had been spending her lunch. For all he knew, she had snuck in the car already and was spying on him from some concealed position. She was always a little sneak, something Edd somehow admired. The thoughts were lost on him as he reached for his wallet to check his finances again, and pointed to the right to ensure that Ed was traveling in the right direction.



Marie finished the makeshift bandage with a knot she tied at the back of Sarah's wrist. Taking a pocket knife out of her pocket, she cut the excess ends off delicately, so as to not aggravate the wound. She was immensely glad to have her sweatshirt crammed in he backpack, since the tear in her shirt was too large to _not _warrant question. It was sheer coincidence that her shirt was white, though Marie took note of the coincidence. Sarah sat next to her on the ground, leaning against the tree Marie had been lounging in earlier. Marie's pack was still hung on one of the small branches.

Sarah hadn't said a word since Marie revealed herself. She now only sat, limp as though she had no energy, her face painted in a deadpan expression as her head rested on the trunk. She wouldn't move, Marie had to grab her limp arm and keep it rested on her knee while she administered aid. The wound had been minor, Marie had stepped in just in time. Her timely entrance stopped Sarah just as the blade had pierced the Radial Artery, but before it had punctured deeply. She had lost some blood, but not enough to need serious medical attention thankfully. Marie knew that the last thing Sarah needed was for everyone to know about this incident. But she wanted to know something.

"Why?" she asked, not knowing if she would be getting an answer from the seemingly catatonic young girl. Her assumptions were justified though, she did not receive any reaction to her query. Marie became angry at this, not knowing why really, "Why!? Why did you do it?" This time, the girl actually looked at her, shifting only her eyes in Marie's direction. This was better than she had hoped for, but she was still very upset at the lack of attention.

"Why?" Sarah whispered through barely moving lips.

"Yes. Why?"

"Why," she again repeated. Marie was becoming more aggravated. She desperately wished Double-D was there, though she knew that the less people who knew about this, the better. Before she was able to say anything, Sarah continued from the long pause, "did you stop me?" Marie noticed a tear well up, and then slide down her already moist cheek, only the second movement she had made in so many minutes. Marie's short flash of temper rapidly subsided. She was not expecting the girl to be happy about what she had done, she had even been preparing herself for embarrassment or anger, but she wasn't ready for this. She actually thought about the question for a short bit, returning Sarah's arm to her, and as she was about to say something to stall for more thinking time. "You don't even know me," she began again, a quiver in her voice heralding more tears. "What's the point in stopping me," she asked through now streaming tears.

Marie thought for a second, not looking at the girl, for fear of losing her concentration. After a few seconds she realized two things, she _didn't_ know who Sarah was really, and more importantly she didn't know why she felt she needed to be saved. She decided to act on this new information. "You know what?" she began, finally looking at the girl again, "I _don't _know. So I'm not gonna answer yet, I want you to tell me what was so bad that this was your only choice." this new statement obviously upset the girl further. It seemed as though in losing control of the dialogue, she had been slapped in the face. She shook her head violently to recover herself. She drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, looking downward and to the side through semi shut eyes.

"You wouldn't understand," she said quietly. Marie wasn't going to accept that. She wanted an answer, and when she wanted something, she was usually got it.

"What makes you think that's going to work?" Marie's statement was rewarded by a glance from the girl again, though little else in her pose changed. "What, do you think, I'm just gonna say 'No I wouldn't. Well, see ya!' You know what you just tried to do, and I saw it, you can't lie and say you didn't either," she said, holding up her own wrist and pointing to the area that was now bandaged on Sarah. "Tell me. I don't care if you think I wouldn't understand." Her voice was subdued, but still held a commanding tone. Marie wasn't sure if this would make the girl respond or not, but yelling at her wouldn't. She knew that much.

The girl withdrew into her leg cocoon again. Marie was not giving up, and now she was going to have to use the big guns. After a pause she asked, "Whose name was that on the note?" With this, Sarah's head shot up, a worried look on her face, her eyes wider than Marie had thought possible. Apparently she had struck the right chord, and she decided to keep pressing, "It wasn't _you're _name, so who was it to? Was it a suicide note?" Sarah now seemed a bit angry, her teeth were gritted, though she still had the same look in her eyes. "Tell me," Marie prodded on, not sure what else she had to get at the girl with.

"Jimmy," Sarah whispered. Marie was surprised that she had gotten her to talk, but didn't want to show it. If she lost her here, there would be no getting her back. Sarah threw her face back into her gathered-up legs, hiding it once more. Audible sobs began resonating from the area where her face was now obscured. Marie was worried, but knew that she just needed to be patient. After a short while, there was a pause in her sobbing, and she finally lifted her head, much more slowly this time. "It's all _her_ fault."

Marie was really interested now, and it was all she could do not to blurt out the question that was now burning a hole on her tongue. She waited another quick second, and then as calmly as she could, she asked, "Who?"

Quickly, like a snake bite, but with more anger and malice, she answered in the similar fashion, "_**HER!**_" she half yelled, half sobbed, eyes squinting in a look of pure frustration and anguish. Marie couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor girl. With that one syllable, she drove her face into her knees yet again. Marie was beginning to lose her patience, but held her ground.

Leaning toward her slightly, and risking a hand on her shoulder, she tried again, "Sarah…who?" More sniveling followed, but finally she lifted her head slowly, a moist trail of tears still flowing from her eyes. Marie was hoping that she was finally ready to cooperate. Though, curious as she was, she wasn't sure she should risk upsetting her any further.

Stumbling on her own words, the redhead began, "H-her n-n-name's M-Mia er…or Mina…Mimi? Oh fuck if I know!" The frustration in her voice was worse than ever now. "_She's _the little bitch who…who…wh-wh-wh…" She was beginning to fall back into her fit.

Marie was just starting to get somewhere, although it was still quite vague. "Hey, hey. Listen, just…just tell me what happened kay?"

Her sobs began to abate a little and she started yet again. "J-J-Jimmy and I w-were…We were friends for a l-long time y'know? He-he--well we've always been close. So when it…when…well when we were 12, I…I kinda-" Marie was still kind of confused, but was trying her best to keep up. Sarah's stuttering had an effect on what it was she was trying to get out. "-I kinda…sorta…well he had always _been there _for me, and that's something I always like about him…and how nice he always was to me…how he would do damn-near anything for me." Marie was genuinely surprised, the girl had receded behind her drawn-up knees a little, but she had calmed down a lot. Marie almost thought she saw the ends of a smile on her cheeks too, possibly caused by thinking about good memories. "H-he…I-I…I liked him _**ok**_?" It seemed like those four words were difficult for her to say, she spat them out quickly and emphasized the "ok" making it sound like Marie was forcing the issue. Was she?

Marie continued to listen, saying nothing simply because it was so difficult to get the girl this far. That, and she really didn't _have_ anything to say. Sarah was still hunched over, but the tears had stopped at least. "He…well he was my best friend. My _only_ friend really. And that was what was so scary about it. I…I didn't know what the hell I was going to do. I was worried and happy and…and…I don't _know_. I didn't know what to do, so I didn't _do _anything." She paused for a little, the memories replaying in her mind like a highlight reel, her eyes looking to her left and down once more, a sign she was re-focusing on something she perceived unpleasant. "Now I was more miserable than before. For…for weeks, things just…_went along_ like normal," her voice became a bit hoarse for a second, Marie thought she was going to start crying again. "Then back on my birthday…13th birthday, he just…asked me what was wrong outta nowhere. He had known. He had seen me change, even though I tried so hard to stay 'normal'… I started crying. And he…he was so nice to me," the girl was on the verge of tears again. "He-he-he just sat there, a-and _held _me while I was crying." Marie couldn't help but remember a time when Double-D had done the same for her. She though of the instance when May went to juvie for something Lee did. But Sarah's tears must have been from sadness, unlike Marie's which had the bitter sting of futile rage directed at her red-haired sister. Marie suddenly realized that her right eye was becoming blurry with a tear of her own. She blinked it back, hoping not to give herself away.

"He," Sarah continued, "just…held me and it was so nice. I ruined one of his shirts, but-bu-but he was ok with it. I finally calmed down and then I…I just told him. I told him everything. How I cared about him, how he was my best and only friend, how he had been so nice to me, how…how I…_everything_! He sat there. He was so…_surprised_…so dumb-struck. He wouldn't even say anything. He just told me that he needed to go and did. I felt so bad I…I just didn't know what to do. I cried all that night. I didn't sleep, I-I _couldn't sleep_. I thought he hated me, he must have because of how he just left, but then why was he so nice when I was crying? The next day I didn't get out of bed. I just laid there…staring at the ceiling…I felt so empty-so…lonely. I felt dead already. It was summer so no one really cared if I hadn't gotten up. My mom, my dad, they worked. And my brother, he…he was busy. So I was just lying there. I don't remember when it was, but eventually my cell phone rang and I wasn't sure whether to answer it or not. After a little bit it stopped, then started again. It was Jimmy of course, (we had special ringers for each other) and I finally tried to grab it, but I was too slow.

"I called back, and he answered before the 2nd 'boooooop'" the girl mimicked the tone that indicated a phone was ringing. "The first thing he did was ask if I was ok. That was just like him, and it hurt to hear him ask that. I didn't think I was, but I told him I was fine. I think I even faked a laugh too (god, how stupid). He wanted me to go over to his house, so we could talk……I didn't even shower, I just slowly got dressed and thought about all the things he could possibly say to me. The bad ones mostly. I got there and he opened the door before I knocked. He was a little bit surprised when he saw me, I must've looked like hell, but he didn't say anything about it. I came in, and we went upstairs to his room. I remember how blue everything was…that powder blue like the ugly suits."

'You mean tuxedos' Marie thought to herself, enthralled in and deeply saddened by the story, but still having random thoughts throughout its telling.

"We sat on his bed, and he just looked at me for a minute, I don't really remember cuz I was looking down. But after a while he said that there was something he needed to tell me. I finally looked up at him and he started to say that he was happy about what I told him the day before, but it made him sad that I cried so much. I couldn't tell where he was going but I knew I wasn't going to like it. He sighed, looked away. Then he looked back, and I could feel my body tense up like…like I was about to be shot or something. I thought I had thought of everything he could say, but… I still remember how he said it…so…quietly. He just looked me in the face and said-no _whispered_, 'Sarah…I'm gay.' And there it was. I just sat there, I think a part of me thought I _had _been shot.

I just repeated what he said a little louder, 'Gay?' He tried to shush me, said his mom was home, and he hadn't told his parents yet. I-I didn't know what to do, the only thing that went through my mind was…_hell _I don't even _remember_. But I just got up and walked away, just like _he _did the day before. He asked for me to come back, even tried to grab my shoulder, but I threw his arm off. I wish I hadn't, but it made him stop following me. When I got outside, the first thing I saw was my brother and his stupid friends…oop" Marie realized that Sarah thought she had offended her by calling Double-D stupid. She didn't care, she knew she didn't mean it. She just raised her hand and waved the thought away like wiping a smudge on a window.

Reassured of her faux pas Sarah went on with her sad tale. "And…and all I could think of doing is running over to them and…I don't know beat em' up or something, I remember I was so _angry_. But what I did was run over to my brother and just…just hugged him. He smelled really bad, but I just hugged him, and buried my face in his green coat, and cried. I thought I was out of tears…after the last day I thought I couldn't cry anymore. And for the first time in his life, he knew what to do. He hugged back and…he told the others he was gonna go in and help me. He actually picked me up and carried me back home as I was crying. He got me inside and stayed by me for the rest of the day. Somehow he was able to understand how bad I felt, and he…he actually looked like he felt bad too. He was there for me, and it was the only time I was really glad to have him around. I felt a little better about Jimmy, but it was only replaced by me being sad for how I had treated Ed. Mom and Dad both had to work late that night, so Ed actually made dinner and got me in bed. He was just so sweet that day…and it really _did_ help."

She was smiling again a little, though Marie could tell by her eyes that she was still remembering how bad she felt. Suddenly her expression changed to a mixture of sadness and anger again. At this, she started a new chapter of her story. "I couldn't see Jimmy for a while after that. He tried to call, but I just turned my phone off and stayed inside for a few days. Must've been about a week before I actually went over to his house to apologize. He was pretty shocked that I had come over instead of maybe just calling or something. For the first few minutes he was a mess of sorry's and that kinda stuff. I had just wanted to tell him that I had finally gotten over it. I hadn't really, but at the same time I knew that was probably what he needed to hear. I heard it coming out of my mouth, and at the same time thought that that somehow made it true, but I knew it didn't. I knew that we had to still stay friends after this, and before he could embarrass himself anymore, I told him so. He agreed and then I just left again. The wasn't anything else for me to say, and so I left.

It was weird for a few more years, but we managed to get things going almost like it hadn't ever happened. When I was 14, I went out with this one guy, Jack. Jimmy was happy for me, but I…I couldn't feel anything for him. Jack was a nice enough guy, taught me guitar, but there just wasn't anything there. I kept it going as long as I did just so I wouldn't seem like I still felt bad about what happened between me an him…Jimmy. But after about 4 months I broke it off. And things settled back into their normal routines. Me, Malory and Kestrel started the band about 2 months after I broke up with Jimmy and that helped me get my mind off of Jimmy for a little." Sarah obviously didn't hear her little Freudian Slip and just continued on. Were it a different, and less serious situation, Marie might have laughed out loud a little.

"Wasn't until the start of this year when things changed again. Jimmy got into that cooking thing of his, I stopped cheerleading the year before I went out with Jack. We kept seeing less and less of each other. I figured it had to happen. It'd be best y'know? But I still didn't wanna just stop seeing him forever. I still didn't have any other friends, 'cept for Mal and Kestrel, but they were busy with boys or tormenting others or whatever, I never really paid attention. They kept trying to set me up with this guy or that, but I just couldn't do it. I just kept going along with the world, cuz I knew fighting against it wouldn't get me anywhere.

"Nazz had that Christmas thing in mid December…the Friday we got out, remember?" Marie nodded, even though she didn't. Not like she was ever _invited _to Nazz's social gatherings. She briefly wondered what she _had_ been doing that night. "And she wanted us to play there. Not much, just 2, 3 songs. She also had a couple other bands just so she could get the most people to come. We played first, and we did pretty good. I was usually able to do fine no matter how I felt. Then after the set I saw Jimmy. It'd been a few days since I'd seen him, and I thought we could hang out together, maybe do some present shopping the next day or somethin', just…_be_ together, y'know? I pushed my way over to him, and when I got close enough I yelled his name. He turned around, said hi, and we talked for a little bit. He was all happy like he normally is around Christmas, but worse. I tried to play off it since I couldn't think of anything to say. I asked him why he was so happy, and… before I even finished the _fucking sentence_…" Sarah let out a big sigh, and hid away in her hands once again. At this rate Marie was going to miss her last class completely, but she didn't care. Mr. Pekkering was going to be pissed, she thought for a moment.

After a short silence, Sarah "returned", a bit worse looking, and so Marie braced for whatever was about to drop. "I didn't even finish asking, when some…some _floozy _came up and wrapped her arms around him from behind. He turned his head and smiled even more. A-uh…they…he…he fucking _kissed _her!" For the first time since the story had really gotten going, Marie couldn't help but show some emotion. Not only surprise at the action (even _she_ had known that the little kid had been gay, apparently long before Sarah found out), but also a deep pang in her own heart, thinking a million thoughts at once about what must have gone through Sarah's mind at the party Marie didn't go to. Sarah was on the verge of tears, and yet was silent at the same time, trembling with what could only have been a mixture of sadness and rage. "He…hi…the only think I could thing…I…_I_-thought he had been…see I…kissss-ssss-_**sssssssssss**_." It sounded like her emotions were getting the best of her vocal skills, she wasn't making any sense. Marie risked getting close to the short-circuiting redhead. Now well within arms reach of the girl, Marie sat, and pondered getting closer. The girl's stuttering and lisping suddenly stopped, and Marie grew a little nervous and froze where she was.

Looking blankly at Marie, small tears cascading down her cheeks, Sarah sat for a second, and then lunged at Marie. Marie was fearful for a brief moment, remembering all the things Double-D and his friends had said about Sarah's violent temper. But all Sarah did was wrap her arms around Marie, and bury her face into her shoulder. Sarah began to squeeze Marie as her sobs seeped through the material to a still very audible tone, and rose further. Marie wasn't really sure what to do at this point. She had never had such a thing happen to her, not just the crying on the shoulder, but the whole last hour. It hadn't dawned on her until now. She decided the best thing would be to hold her, she figured that's what she would want from someone if she were in that position.

After a few seconds Sarah sat up a little, not leaving the comfort she evidently found with Marie, but still separating herself a little. Tears streamed from her eyes with greater force now, and her face was red from the exertion of her sobs. Marie decided to let go, for what reason, she didn't know. Sarah sat up on her own and again, scooted back to the relative support of the oak, and drew her knees up (either for more support or protection, Marie couldn't tell). Marie figured that it was going to take a little work to get the monologue going again, and so she did some talking of her own. "Sarah…Sarah, listen to me. What happened? Tell me what happened at the party. Why…why did this happen?"

Sarah continued to sob bitterly her eyes darted around, almost as though searching for something. Finally, she quieted, sighed deeply and spoke. "Sh-sh…she kissed him, and…_he _kissed _her _and…_I don't know_," she groaned, as she clutched her head at the sides and shook it back and forth, her eyes clenched shut. After stopping, she resumed staring at the ground and spoke slightly quieter than before. "He pulled her around to his side an…they…they both were laughing. H-he said, 'Sarah, this is Mimi' and she gave me this little _shit-eating_ grin of hers! I knew what was going on, but I didn't say anything. I remember feeling like I couldn't move. I don't remember how long it had been before I said something but it felt like forever. I don't know what kept me from jumping at her and scratching her eyes out, or ripping her throat out with my teeth or…fuck just running away like I had done so many times already. I said something about having another set coming up and having to go and left. I walked away fast and I heard him say my name but then it was drowned out. I just left.

"I walked outside and went into the woods for some reason. We didn't have another set, I just used it as an excuse. Mal and Amanda were pissed at me cuz Nazz actually _did_ want us to play again later after I'd walked out, we were pretty popular I guess. But since they couldn't find me, and I had left my guitar and shit there, Nazz wouldn't even pay for the songs we did _before_. Mal called me sometime the next week about that, but I didn't care.

"When I left, there was a little bit of snow on the ground and it was so cold. I didn't have my coat or anything, just what I wear for shows. Some tight fitting piece of crap Amanda made to get boys to notice me better, but it was so damn cold that night. I walked around the woods, not knowing where to go, what to do…why the hell I was even there. I was just thinking, and shivering. I remember seeing my breath in the moonlight. My heart had been ripped out. I couldn't tell what I was thinking really just cuz I was thinking so many different thoughts at once, it was scary. I finally stopped in this one area, near an older tree I saw. It wasn't really anything, but it…I don't know there was something about it. The bark on one side was really light, kinda thin, like it had been scraped off a couple years ago, and the new bark was like a scar or somethin'. It was still kinda dark but I also remember seeing this…sortofa stripe going up it from the ground. Someone had hurt that tree, like Jimmy had hurt me. And like that tree it was gonna leave a scar if I didn't do anything."

Marie had felt pretty nervous herself for those last few sentences. She was a little worried about what had happened at that tree for Sarah, but not too badly since she was sitting in front of her, talking. She herself thought back to her tree for the first time in…a _while_, how it was scarred by what Double-D did. It was almost ironic how Sarah thought of it as "scarring" the tree. But Double-D did that, so Marie _wouldn't _have a scar. Marie thought that she might have to go back to her tree sometime to see it again.

Marie's thoughts were interrupted by Sarah's change in tone. "I knew it then," she started up again, a more harsh timbre marked her new words. "I knew I had to do something to stop it, I was done being sad I thought. It had been a long time since I was truly angry, but…oh god it felt so _gooooood_." Sarah's tone had reverted to near euphoria briefly. Marie was a bit confused, but was too deep in the story to question it. "I decided to just go home, to think. I could have stayed there, but even as angry as I was, I was still cold. On my way home I saw a car pulling into the Cul-de-sac and hid. I don't remember why I did, but I was scared of being seen. Maybe Jimmy was in there, and…damn, I don't know. As it drove by, I saw it was just Edd's old car. I saw you in there too. I guess you guys had just come back from a date or something. He parked on the curb and ran out around the car real fast. It looked like he was gonna try an open your door for you or something, and I remember feeling that…'How sweet' feeling. He tripped on the curb or something and fell. I think you got out and tried to help him or something, I left while you two were distracted." Marie wondered what she and Double-D had been doing that night. Considering normally Double-D would have dropped her off at her place after a date. It wasn't important though, she mentally laughed at how clumsy Double-D was, but dared not show it on the outside.

"I got home and just went to bed. I didn't cry or anything, I kinda felt like it, but I didn't. All I could think about was how angry I was. Not only that that bimbo stole Jimmy away from me, but because…well I knew he didn't lie to me. He's always been so honest with me. But how…how she could _turn_ him. I know it isn't right to think like that, but I…I always hoped that…well? I don't know, maybe he'd…change his mind?..for _me_?" Her questioning tone sought approval from Marie, she didn't know why, she decided to play it safe and not react one way or another. Sarah continued despite the lack of reaction.

"I kept thinking about what I would do to her, what I _could _do. I think I actually laughed a little before I fell asleep. But for the next…god, three months, I couldn't get near her. I wasn't going to do whatever I was going to do with Jimmy around, fact was I still hadn't decided how I was going to get back at her. This sorta made things worse cuz whenever I saw them together, I just got sad and lost my nerve. I…I never _used _to lose my nerve like that before." She looked sad now, like a piece of her was missing, and she had just now realized. Marie looked on her with a lot of pity, what she had gone trough was terrible, and it had almost killed her.

"But then," Sarah spoke up, with a little more fervor, though still sad, "last week I figured out what to do. I'd ask Jimmy to take me to the dance. I knew he'd wanna go with that bitch Mimy or whatever, but I'd make up some story about how my boyfriend just dumped me. He wouldn't know I didn't have one, he was too busy with _her _to pay attention to me. I…I was so sure it would work." The tone of Sarah's voice was wavering back and forth with each change in emotion. It dipped down to near inaudible with that last sentence, indicating that her plan evidently hadn't worked. "I went to his house last Saturday and got all teary and asked. He was his usual nice self. He told me a bunch of crap about how I didn't need the guy if he was gonna dump me this soon and stuff…but he kept avoiding the answer. I finally got kinda mad and told him I _needed _him to do it for me. He couldn't say anything, he just laughed nervously and made some weak excuse about having to go and closed the door in my face. I got pissed off, _really_ pissed, I almost put my fist through the door, but stopped just before touching it, god I wanted to hit something so bad. I just jammed my fists into my pockets and turned around to go find something. Right after I stepped off the curb I heard someone in front of me say 'what the hell was that?' I looked up, and there _she_ was. Angry as I was, I was too shocked to really say anything, and when she asked again, I just said, 'nothing'. She came up and got in my face and started telling me off. I can remember it pretty well, something like 'I don't know who the hell you think you are, but you stay the _hell_ away from Jimmy. You had your chance you little skank, and you blew it.' I started getting angry again and she just kept going, she just…wouldn't…_shut up_." Sarah continued with her impression of the girl, changing her voice slightly so Marie could tell who was saying what. "'Jimmy's told me all about you, you little bitch. All you do is pretend to cry your eyes out for him all the time, and hope that'll work and you can have him all to yourself, but it's not going to work, y'got that?' I was about to explode I was so mad, but I…I just couldn't move. 'Listen, if I ever see you around Jimmy again, I don't care how gooda friends you are, I'll ruin it for you. I'll just tell him I caught you suckin' some guy's-'…that's when I lost it, I wasn't going to let her keep lying about me. It was bad enough that she was lying about me to my face, but she was actually going to tell Jimmy lies about me, and I…I lost it. I guess I finally found something to hit. I took a swing at her, but she must have expected that I'd do that and leaned out of the way. She must have stepped wrong or something cuz she fell right after. I hadn't even touched her.

"Then," she said, her voice much more subdued, "I-I-I heard Jimmy. He yelled my name and…I turned around and saw him in his window looking at us. I was actually happy that he saw because I thought he might've seen what she was saying to me. He left from his window to come downstairs. I looked back down at that stupid bitch, but she was smiling, and had this…look in her eyes. Then she took a rock off the ground and started scraping up the side of her face with it, making it red and dirty. I was being set up, it had to have looked like I hit her. I panicked, I didn't know what to do, and when Jimmy opened the door…I…I just ran... Again." More tears, though Marie understood why, the whole thing was just horrible, and she was now worried because she had no idea what she was going to say once the whole sordid story was over. Sarah was sitting, silently leaking tear after tear from her eye, staring at nothing in particular, occasionally sniffling violently. Marie realized that the girl _was _finished and began frantically searching her mind for something to say.

"I've been in a dream these last few days," Marie was startled by the sudden string of words, the story was not yet over apparently. "Not a dream, but…I don't know, I just been walking through life for the past few days, not knowing what was going on. I'm not sure if anyone noticed. I even got asked to the dance by some loser named Kurt, but I just ignored him. There was no point in tryin to make Jimmy jealous or angry or…god, anything." The inflection of her voice had quieted now, there was barely one at all, she seemed so monotone to Marie, that it sounded like she was already dead, or dying. "Wasn't til two days ago that I got _this _idea. I figured that someone would find me tonight, y'know? Maybe some happy couple, sneaking out here to... God, that'd ruin their night huh? I just figured it all out in maybe…2 minutes. There was nothing to it really, and for a while after…I…I felt _happy_. Something inside me just clicked cuz _I _had decided something, and…I don't know, just…there was _nothing _that was gonna stop me." She shot Marie a quick glance and then looked back at the ground. It was not one of anger like she would have expected, but of fear. Almost like she was afraid Marie would hurt her for saying something like that.

"That-that note I ripped up was for him…Jimmy. I've been working on it all the last day and a half. I don't even remember what it said, isn't that weird? I just…I figured that it'd be better if he had to find out from _her_. If he didn't already know what was going on, she'd have to tell him. I guess that's why I tore it up, but the weird thing is, I can remember thinking that the main reason was that it was supposedta rain tonight. Maybe, I thought that it'd get wet and he'd never be able to read it anyway." Sarah quickly unfolded her arms and clasped her hands over her face. "God, what was I thinking? _Was_ I thinking? I…god I don't know. This…no this _can't _be the way, this is just letting her win?!" Sarah opened a notch between her third and forth fingers to let her eyes poke out a little. The last few sentences made Marie feel like she wasn't even there, she didn't know why it made her feel so relieved.

"No…no. _God damnit_ _NO_! I don't know what I'm going to do, but…but…no. She's not going to win, I won't let her." Sarah's legs stretched out now with and she had dropped her hands and now held them in fists in front of her, Marie was baffled that the girl actually had a small smile on. Now she turned her head to directly face Marie, giving off an almost psychotic look. Her expression changed rapidly to a more pensive one. 'Oh god Marie, I'm so sorry for what happened. I didn't realize it til I was talking to you. All I've _ever _done was run away. That's not gonna happen this time. God Marie _thank you so much_." Sarah lunged at Marie a second time now, though this time she didn't cry. She hugged Marie fiercely, hurting her slightly. Marie wondered if she was going to have to say anything at all. "Y'know," the girl said quietly, since she was so close to her ear. "A while ago, before you and him got together, I had a little…_thing _for Double-D, er, Edd. He was always kinda cute I thought. You have no idea how jealous of you two I am." Sarah ended the embrace and stood, brushing herself off. Marie stared up at her, she had a new light that Marie couldn't remember seeing in anyone before. Her eyes held a sense of purpose, and almost a happiness that seemed alien on the girl's face. Sarah extended a hand to the sitting Marie, which she accepted and was yanked up onto her feet. She breathed a sigh of relief once she had regained her balance, more so though at the fact that it seemed that the problem had worked itself out almost. They looked at each other for a second or two, Marie thought that they both must have been searching for something to say. The silence was becoming awkward.

"You're not going to _kill_ her are you?" Marie said, mentally scolding herself afterward for it.

Sarah laughed a little, "Nah, can't do _that_. But…well, it's like I said, I don't know yet. These last few months have taught me something though that I think'll help me figure it out."

"Oh?"

Sarah donned a more pompous voice, giving the impression of a teacher imparting some wisdom on her student, "Emotional pain, is far, _far _worse than physical." She dropped her new voice and continued, "She taught it to me, and now I guess I'll have to teach it to her."

Marie smiled back and said, "well just don't get yourself into any trouble." This induced a larger smile out of the redhead.

"Thanks, _Mom_. But really, thanks," said Sarah, holding up her hand and letting the cuff of her sleeve fall enough to see the bit of Marie's torn shirt. There was a small spot of red on it, where the artery had been punctured, but Marie had stopped it before the blade cut very deep. "For this…and…well listening to me."

"N-no problem," Marie felt a little uneasy. She wasn't really used to playing the good guy. She hadn't really been the "bad guy" for a while, but this was a first for her being truly "good." "You'd better be careful kid," she said, trying to regain her normal persona. "I don't ever wanna see you _here _again."

Sarah chuckled again, "No worries kay?" She turned around, seeming like she had somewhere to go. Just before starting off to wherever it was she was going, she looked back over her shoulder, "S'there _anything _stupider than killing yourself over a boy?" She turned her head back again and chuckled, as she walked back toward campus. Marie smiled, and then realized what Sarah said. She _had _made that choice before, she hadn't thought about it in a long time before today. She wondered if she had been like that, when Double-D found her. She wondered what would have happened to her if he hadn't. She began to feel sad and depressed, and so she banished the depressing thoughts from her mind by looking at her watch.

Lunch had ended some 45 minutes ago, and so her econ class would be ending in about 5. She sighed, and began climbing the tree once more to retrieve her backpack. Once on her branch again, she looked over toward the school again, seeing Sarah in her long black coat, still walking. She wondered if she was still smiling. Then wondered what she was going to do to the hapless girl who had gotten in her way. "Glad it's not me," she said out loud without realizing. She grabbed her pack and jumped back to the grassy ground. A much softer landing this time than the last time she'd done it. She dropped her pack and opened it, retrieving the black hoodie she kept in there in case it started raining before she got back home. She put it on, figuring it would hide the very obvious tear in her shirt. Afterward, she slung her sack, and began walking toward campus, but a bit off to the north. Economy was her last class of the day, and so she usually left after (unless she had plans with Edd). She had to get home to check on her dress, and then she had an hour before her hair appointment. She began to feel a little bad for Sarah's situation, but was still glad that she still had her man, and that she was going to go to the dance with him and everything would be _perfect_. Unless of course Lee or May had messed with her dress. Then there was likely going to be blood. Lots and lots of blood. Marie smiled evilly at the thought briefly and continued on.

Wow, deep stuff huh? Thanks for reading, need comments now! I FEED of your BACK.


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